U.S. Market for SO2 Allowances

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1 U.S. Market for SO2 AllowancesSulfur dioxide (SO2) is a primary product of coal-burning power plants.SO2 pollution lowers the pH scale of rainfall, leading to the problem commonly known as acid rain.Increased acidity of lakes and rivers.Slower growth, injury or death of forests.Visibility impairment.SO2 can impair respiratory function and is linked to a variety of respiratory ailments.

2 U.S. Market for SO2 AllowancesWhat Are Allowances?An allowance authorizes a unit within a utility or industrial source to emit one ton of SO2 during a given year or any year thereafter. At the end of each year, the unit must hold an amount of allowances at least equal to its annual emissions, i.e., a unit that emits 5,000 tons of S02 must hold at least 5,000 allowances that are usable in that year.Allowances are fully marketable commodities. Once allocated, allowances may be bought, sold, traded, or banked for use in future years. Allowances may not be used for compliance prior to the calendar year for which they are allocated.

3 U.S. Market for SO2 AllowancesThe process of setting up a market for pollution emissions involves three steps:Establish an overall cap on pollution (i.e. Q’)For the U.S. SO2 market the cap was set in the 1990 Clean Air Act amendment.Reduce SO2 emissions from fixed sources by 50% from 1980 levels (17.3 million tons).Allocate permits (allowances) to pollutersIn the U.S. SO2 market, a ‘grandfathering’ scheme was used.Allocated to polluters based on their pollution.Facilitate trading between pollutersIn the U.S. SO2 market the trading was generally unrestricted.Stiff penalties to those firms who exceeded their allowances.

4 U.S. Market for SO2 AllowancesHow Are Allowances Allocated?Allowances are allocated for each year beginning in In Phase I, EPA allocates allowances to each unit at an emission rate of 2.5 pounds of SO2/mmBtu (million British thermal units) of heat input, multiplied by the unit's baseline mmBtu (the average fossil fuel consumed from 1985 through 1987)…Roughly 440 units are involved in Phase 1

5 U.S. Market for SO2 Allowances…In Phase II, which began in 2000, the limits imposed on Phase I plants are tightened, and emissions limits are also imposed on all SO2 emitting units (another 2000 or so units). EPA allocates allowances to each unit at an emission rate of 1.2 pounds of SO2/mmBtu of heat input, multiplied by the unit's baseline, which effectively places a cap at 8.95 million on the number of allowances issued to units each year.

7 Market for SO2 AllowancesHow is Compliance Determined?At the end of the year, units must hold a quantity of allowances equal to or greater than the amount of SO2 emitted during that year.What Is The Penalty for Noncompliance?Penalty for noncompliance: $2000 per ton over, with inflation it is now about $3000 per ton. Firms have a year to offset excess emissions by purchasing permits. Very rarely are firms out of compliance.

9 Market for SO2 AllowancesReasons why the program resulted in a robust marketThere were wide differences in the cost of abating emissions.The policy was flexible.The implementation was simple.The provisions were enforced => the government’s property right to no pollution above the standard is secure.

10 Market for SO2 AllowancesTwo questions:Has the SO2 trading program reduced emissions?Has the program reduced the cost of emissions control?

12 Is the SO2 allowance program cheaper than the usual regulatory approach?Can be highly successful at obtaining emissions reductions cost-effectively; Stavins:“Trading volume has increased over the life of the program, and the robust market has resulted in an estimated cost savings of up to $1 billion annually, compared with the cost of command-and-control regulatory alternatives that were considered by Congress in prior years, representing a 30-50% cost savings.”

13 SO2 Trading: That was then…1990: Title IV of the Clean Air Act established trading1995: Phase I (374 large units)2000: Phase II (1,420 more units)National Cap with no spatial restrictions on trading. By 2000 emissions were 40% lower than 1980 levelsContinuous monitoring of emissions1 allowance used for each ton emittedVery low transaction costs (0.1% in 1999)

15 SO2: Poster Child of Cap-and-Trade“The allowance trading program has had exceptionally positive welfare effects, with estimated benefits being as much as ten times greater than costs.”Stavins (2005)“The EPA and other governments have looked upon the Acid Rain Program as the standard of how a market-based system can control emissions at reasonable cost.” Tesoriero (2010)

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